


Tell Them I Send My Love

by ETNMystic



Category: Escape the Night (Web Series)
Genre: Actually a lot of hurt, Cinnamon Roll, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mostly hurt, brave cinnamon roll, very much hurt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-28
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2020-07-23 14:04:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20009524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ETNMystic/pseuds/ETNMystic
Summary: Two best friends go head-to-head in the Sands of Egypt, but only one will be able to make it out alive.I apologize in advance for crushing your souls.





	Tell Them I Send My Love

Mortimer shuffles the cards in the first deck, reluctant to pick out the two who will face off in the final challenge. At this point, most everyone is nervous, hell even riddled with anxiety, but Justine in particular is trembling at the knees. The odds are definitely not in her favor; after all, she made several mistakes in the urn challenge, so her name’s in the deck more times than anyone else 

"First up," Mortimer announces as he draws from the first group. 

He turns the card around.

"'The Adventurer.' Justine."

Justine bows her head.

"No, no, no, no, no," she moans as Mortimer grabs the second deck and begins to shuffle it.

It's not like she didn't know this was coming, but it was still a horrific thing to hear her name be called. She’s just hoping it’s someone who isn’t going to have much of a chance, someone she doesn’t feel too close to. 

"And for the second group," Mortimer continues, picking out a second card and turning it around.  
"Rosanna."

Eyes widen, heads turn, gasps emerge.

"Okay I actually did _not_ see that one coming," Gabbie remarks in shock. 

This puts a pit right into Justine's stomach. Ro's her best friend, her other half, practically like a sister. Now they have to go against each other? This has to be a nightmare. It has to be a nightmare; there's no other possible explanation. Any minute now, someone will shake her awake; they'll shine a light in her darkness and it'll be nothing more than a bad dream. But nothing happens. This is very real. She and Ro have to compete, and in nearly every competition, there's one thing that's consistent:

_ Two go in, only one comes out.  _

Ro's realizing the same. She's trying to maintain composure, but her eyes give it away. She's frightened and absolutely desperate. And so are most everyone else. Tana has her lips pursed, trying to hold back her tears. Colleen's got her head bowed. Joey has his head in his hands. Destorm's calm for the most part, but his eyes give away a glimmer of regret. He thought Ro would have zero chance of getting picked. It's why he voted for her in the first place. She'd been at least decently helpful and he'd only voted her in to ruffle up some feathers. Maybe he should've voted for Tana instead. What's she done? Practically nothing.

"Can't we re-draw?" Tana begs.

"I'm sorry," Mortimer sighs.  
“Once the names are drawn, there's no going back."

"No, no, no, no," Colleen groans sadly.  
"This isn't happening."

"This isn't right. It's not fair," Bretman exclaims.

"Life isn't fair," the sorceress shrugs.

"Bitch, this ain't life; it's purgatory."

"Same difference."

"It's really not, but go off, I guess."

Justine and Ro give each other a rueful glance. They're both thinking the same thing; _I don't want her to die, but I don't want to die either._ But they know that they can't delay this inevitable for much longer.

"Let's just get this over with," Justine sighs.

Ro nods in agreement, trying to keep up a smile, but it's a sad one.

"At least it'll be one step closer to life," she tells them.  
"So it won't be in vain."

"True," Tana sighs.

_ But still. It's not fair. _

Ro and Justine stand and say their goodbyes.

"We love you, Ro," Gabbie chokes as she hugs each of them.  
"We love you too, Justine."

The others try to say goodbye, but Gabbie's said it all. They don't want to say who they want to come back. These are both sweet women, best friends, going up against one another. Claiming favorites would just make things worse.

"You two, follow me," Mortimer tells them.

Grabbing the twin sphinxes, the Socialite and Adventurer reluctantly follow Mortimer out the doors. Everyone knows one of them will not return, and it makes their hearts heavy. Two questions drag through their minds: Who's going to get out alive? And who do they _want_ to return?

* * *

Grasping onto each other's hands for dear life, Justine and Ro enter the doorway into the Sands of Egypt.Stones are scattered around it with pretty notable distances between them. 

"Oh gosh," Justine whimpers.  
"Oh, there's a note."

The two of them place the twin sphinxes on the pedestals. Out of nowhere, a scepter appears. Ro grabs the note and reads it aloud.

_"The scepter of Isis cannot be touched until one of you has built a pyramid in her name. Gather the pieces and assemble them. The first to do so can claim the scepter and command the mummy to retrieve the key. However, the mummy has cursed the sands with flesh-eating beetles, and you may only travel on the stones."_

The two of them shiver as they hear a trilling chorus of beetles emerge from the sand. Once their nerves are relatively calm, Ro continues. 

_"Stepping on the sand or getting touched by the mummy will take you out of the challenge for ten seconds."_

"Okay, that's crazy," Justine exclaims.  
"Because those are very precious seconds."

"Are you ladies ready?" Mortimer asks.

In response, Justine and Ro give each other a side bear hug; a good 10 seconds pass before they break away.

"All right," Mortimer says.  
"Begin."

The two of them hear the grunt of the mummy approaching them and they take off.

"So..." Justine begins as she scouts the area. 

"All right," Ro sighs.

_It's just like Benjamin's challenge, except there are stones that are really far apart from each other. And flesh-eating beetles. And we're in the Sands of Egypt. And we can't touch the sand. And it's basically the advanced version of Benjamin's challenge._

"Is that a piece?" she questions, pointing at a spot nearby. 

"This is so disgusting," Justine trembles.  
"Oh gosh!"

"That's a piece," Ro exclaims.

Neither of these girls want to win, but they also don't want to lose. If they lose, they're going to die. But if they win, the other one dies. It's a no-win situation. 

Ro picks up her piece. 

"Oh no, oh no, oh no," she panics.

"These are so far away!" Justine exclaims as she grips onto as many pieces as possible.

All of a sudden, the mummy grabs ahold of Justine.

_Great, I've just lost 10 seconds. Ten precious seconds._

Meanwhile Ro, being as short as she is, is struggling a bit to get from stone to stone, just barely touching the sand as she grabs a few more pieces. 

"I think....I think I have just one more," she tells herself as Justine returns to the game.

But she knows that if she finishes her pyramid, she'll get the key, but Justine will be the one to die. She doesn't want her to die, but she doesn't like the idea of dying either. There has to be some way 

All of a sudden, she gets an idea.

"Hey, Justine!" she calls out.

"Yeah?"

Ro calls back out in between stepping from stone-to-stone.

"What if.....we both.....finish.....our pyramids.......at the......same time?"

"What.....good would that....do?"

"The note said....the first.....to finish.....gets.....to live. So....what if we're both.....the first....to finish?"

That's when Justine gets it.

"It's worth...a shot."

Ro spots a few more pieces and treads lightly on the stones. When her carrying capacity is full, she heads over to one of the pedestals and begins to build the base of the pyramid. Justine’s got her base ready, but she’s still looking for her pyramid top. Ro takes this opportunity to slow her progress. She pretends to study her pyramid, while making occasional glances at Justine to track her progress. 

"This is......so difficult!" Justine exclaims.  
"It's like the same color as the sand---oh gosh!"

Justine yelps as she feels a flesh-eating beetle on her boot. 

"You do _not_ belong there!" 

Shaking it off, she finally spots the final piece only a few stones away. Ro realizes the mummy's coming for her and she proceeds to jump around a bit, narrowly avoiding his grasp.

"There it is!"

Justine hops over and snatches it up

"I got it!" 

Ro heads back to her pedestal and speeds up her progress upon hearing this, while Justine jumps from stone to stone to her pedestal. Finally Ro has her base finished. Both of them pick up the tops.

"These look okay?" Ro asks.

Justine nods.

"They look like pyramids. All they need are the tops. Ready?"

"On three," Ro nods in return.  
"One."

"Two," Justine follows.

"Three!" they exclaim at the same time.

Both tops hit the bases in sync, and the two women brace for impact, for chaos, but there's nothing. They look up to find the mummy, still and confused. 

"Did.....did we do it?" Justine gasps.

"I think we did," Ro smiles.

The two embrace one another in happy tears. Once again, they're thinking the same thing:

_ We're both going to make it! That's one less person who has to die. _

"Wait, the key!" Justine exclaims.  
"The mummy needs to give us the key."

"Right!" Ro agrees.

She hops over and picks up the scepter of Isis. The mummy begins to move towards them when Ro raises the scepter over her head.

"Mummy, bring the jeweled key! Please," she adds quickly.

Stopping the mummy turns around and heads to the fountain. A case appears, seemingly out of a whirlwind of golden dust. The mummy takes the case and places it in front of Ro. She tries to open it, but her efforts are fruitless. Suddenly she spots another note; this one is on top of the case. Grabbing it, she slowly reads through it to herself and her face drops quickly.

"No," Ro sighs sadly.  
"No, no, no, no."

"What is it?" Justine exclaims, the hope draining from her face.

Pursing her lips, Ro reads aloud:

_ Your betrayal is not yet complete. You must order the mummy to kill your friend if you wish to claim the key. _

Ro can't believe what she's reading. Of course there's a death. There's always a death, and this time, it's one from which there is no return.  Justine's heart sinks as she realizes the same thing. They hadn't defeated the system. They'd just delayed it. She's about to die. This was her chance to redeem herself, and now it's gone. Of course, she doesn't blame Ro. This is just how the game goes. 

"Ro, it's okay," she sighs trying to muster a small smile.

There's no reply.

"I won't be mad at you, I promise."

Still nothing.

"Just tell him to make it quick and painless---."

"Justine."

She looks up to see Ro in front of her. She must want to give Justine a hug before ordering the mummy to kill her. With a sad smile, she obliges, rubbing the Socialite's back.

"I love you," Justine cries.  


Ro rubs her back in exchange before she whispers six damning words.

"Tell them I send my love."

A freezing chill runs through Justine as they break away from the hug.

"Ro, what are you doing?" Justine worries as Ro slowly raises the scepter once again.

"Mummy," Ro orders with a sigh.  
"Kill me please."

A flash of fear falls into Justine's vision. Quickly she pulls Ro back.

"Ro, no. Please. Don't do this!"

"I didn't want him to kill you," she explains.  
"I want you to have a second chance."

After some contemplation, in which Justine grasps onto Ro for dear life hoping that it wouldn't go through, the mummy begins to advance on Ro, growling.

"No!" Justine cries, looking around for something to save her best friend. 

She spots a dagger and, like lightning, she pounces on it.

"Ro, I've got a dagger!" Justine exclaims as she rushes over to the mummy.  
"I can save you. I can---!"

"It's okay," Ro assures her, resigned to her choice.  
"Please don't blame yourself for any of this. Get the key and take it back to the group."

As the mummy closes in on her, she gives Justine a kind and gentle smile.

"I love you too, Justine."

Whirling the Socialite around, the mummy grasps onto her throat, squeezing it. Soon enough, Ro begins to cough and wheeze.

"No please!" Justine screams.

She rushes behind the mummy and stabs him with the dagger, but it barely phases him. Desperately she stabs him quickly, screaming out.

"Die! Die!" she cries as tears escape her eyes.  
"Leave my best friend alone and die!"

At this point, Ro is gasping for breath as the mummy strangles the life out of her. There's a white light in her vision and a gentle voice calls to her.

_ Rosanna, we've been waiting for you.  _

A figure in white reaches for her and she smiles, reaching out them. The pain fades as does her consciousness, and soon enough, the sweetheart drops limp.

Justine is still going at the mummy in spite of this. She's running low on stamina and before she knows it, she drops to her knees as the mummy leaves. Desperately, the Adventurer crawls to her best friend, her arms trembling. Ro lies with her head atop a stone, donning a tranquil smile. Justine shakes her head and begins to chuckle sadly.

"No, this is just.....just a prank. Yeah, that's it. You......you're just playing a joke on me, Ro."

There's no response. Justine gives another sad chuckle.

"No, I'm....serious. That was.....a good one, Ro. You.....you really had me there for a second. Now come on and get up. We need to take.....the key back to......the group."

But the Socialite gives no response.

"Ro," Justine gently shakes her body.  
"Ro, get up! We have to get back to the group."

Nothing.

"Ro, this isn't funny anymore! Get up! Please!"

At this point, she's yelling, trying to hold tears back. She checks fruitlessly for any sign of life, a breath, a heartbeat, a pulse, something, anything! But the poor Adventurer comes up empty-handed. Now as she hugs her body tightly, tears pouring down her face, Justine can't delude herself any longer; Rosanna Pansino, her best friend, is dead for good.

"Justine," Mortimer's voice breaks through her thoughts.  
"Get the key. We need to head back to the group."

Reluctantly Justine lets go of her best friend and head to the case. She takes out the jeweled key, trying not to cry anymore, feeling a lump form in her throat. 

"Let's go," Mortimer sighs sadly.

"But we.....we can't just leave her like that," she squeaks, gesturing to Ro.  
"Can't we give her at least a flower or something?"

"We don't have time, I'm sorry."

Resigned, Justine follows him back to the parlor. 

* * *

As the others wait anxiously for one of them to return, Destorm is focused on the armageddon clock.

"I don't know if y'all realized this," he tells them.  
"But the damn Armageddon clock is at 12:00 midnight now."

"What's that mean?" Alex asks.

"Last time we was here, it was at 10:00."

"Okay," Gabbie gasps, fanning herself with Tana's hat.  
"Okay."

"The sun comes up at 6:00 in the morning."

"Okay, I need to breathe," she says pulling up her sleeves.  
"I need to breathe."

"This thing is going to turn us all to dust. Well, all of you to dust, 'cause I'm not dying."

"Well, I'm just confused," Colleen points out  
"'Cause I thought Joey said he was coming to save us. And now, one by one, we're getting picked off."

"Okay, well things change, okay?" Joey says defensively.

"I know this is the same thing, Joey!" Tim exclaims.  
"What are you talking about?"

He figures that it is _kinda_ their fault for agreeing to come along the second time. 

_ It's like fool me once, shame on me....Fool me twice, shame on...Just shame, you know? _

"Oh my God! Mortimer's coming back," Gabbie gasps.

Everyone turns towards the door. Mortimer enters followed by a reluctant Justine.

"What?" Joey exclaims.

"No!" Colleen gasps.

"Rosanna," Bretman whispers.

"Wait, where is...Ro?" Tana wonders.

"She won the challenge," Justine sighs as she flops on the couch next to Joey.  
"But she was supposed to betray me, order the mummy to kill me. But......she ordered him to kill her instead. And she told me......she sends you all her love."

"Oh my God," Colleen chokes as tears come to her eyes.

"Wait, so where.....where is she now?" Tana wonders.

"She's in Hell," Gabbie exclaims.  
"The paper said Hell. We'll be sent to Hell forever."

"No, that's just when the Armageddon clock reaches 6:00. The paper just said 'a final death from which there is no return,'" Colleen exclaims.  
"And besides, Ro is probably the least likely of us to end up in Hell."

"Oh God," Justine squeaks.  
"I killed her."

"You didn't," Tana assures her as tears come to her eyes.  
"She made the choice to sacrifice herself. She wanted to save you."

"If only I could've saved her, if only I could've stopped the mummy, I tried stabbing him, but I---!"

"Justine, it's okay," Joey soothes her, in spite of tears coming to his eyes.  
"You did what you could, but Ro made her choice."

Justine is silent for a moment before falling into Joey's embrace. At this point, everyone; even the Sorceress; even Destorm. They all have tears in their eyes or at least feel a lump in their throat as they see Justine weep in agony.

"We'll get through this," Joey assures her as he rubs her back.  
"We'll pull through this together."

He brings her up to eye level and gives a small, kind smile.

"And we'll do it for Ro."

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! I'm hosting an ETN roleplay and I'm in need of more characters, but particularly female characters. Here's the link: https://discord.gg/rYecv9T


End file.
